Scarlets’ sluggish start to the new United Rugby Championship (URC) season is by no means a crisis according to head coach Dwayne Peel.
The Llanelli region suffered a second sobering home defeat of the campaign on Friday night, with Stormers subjecting them to a first nilling in the league in more than 18 years.
The South African side’s 34-0 victory followed Scarlets’ disappointing loss to Munster in the opening round of matches, with last weekend’s fixture against Connacht postponed due to travel chaos caused by Storm Amy.
“We haven’t played much rugby really, we’re two games into it so it’s not a crisis by any stretch of the imagination,” said Peel.
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“It’s a sobering one, we knew Stormers were going to be a good side, and we needed to be at our very best to be able to compete. We weren’t that.
“That’s what happens when you’re up against the bigger teams, the best teams – if you’re not at maximum, it’s going to be a difficult night.”
Peel is concerned by an ever-growing injury list, with Tristan Davies and Max Douglas the latest casualties.
“The injury side of things is tough at the minute. We lost two locks again [against Stormers], the only two locks who were fit, so we’ll just have to see where we are when we travel to South Africa on Tuesday,” said Peel.
“I’m unclear at the minute as to the extent but Tristan has an HIA (head injury assessment) and Max Douglas looks like he’s hurt a rib. He’s in quite a bit of pain in the changing room.”
“It will be a tough couple of days for the medics I’m sure.”
Peel did not rule out more short-term signings, after bringing in lock Steve Cummins on loan from Dragons to cover the absences of Jake Ball, Sam Lousi, Jac Price and Will Evans.
Peel takes his side to South Africa for games against Lions and Sharks before the international break and he is confident his side can bounce back.
“They are tough fixtures definitely,” he said.
“But we had the exact same fixtures at the end of May and it was a pretty successful tour for us.
“When we go to South Africa it’s always a good two weeks for us. We need to go there and improve as a rugby team but also enjoy each other’s company off the field. That’s what it’s all about.”
